


Pushing Buttons

by CosmicMog



Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Corbee, F/F, minor Ryder/Lexi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-12
Updated: 2020-11-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:46:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,472
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27516313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CosmicMog/pseuds/CosmicMog
Summary: After Cora saves her life, Peebee rises to the challenge of pushing the Lieutenant's buttons to uncover how she really feels. (Shaped By Clearest Blue - Extended Cut.)
Relationships: Cora Harper/Peebee
Comments: 1
Kudos: 14





	Pushing Buttons

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Shaped by Clearest Blue](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12132192) by [orphan_account](https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account). 



> I originally wrote this story back in 2017, titled 'Shaped By Clearest Blue'. I revisited it this year (2020) and decided to give it a revamp, and thus this extended version was born. 
> 
> I know this ship is quite the rarepair (I do seem to gravitate towards these), but I'm still very much a fan of their dynamic, and intend to continue this story with a sequel, and share more of my work for the ship regardless. I hope that by reading my work I inspire more readers to ship them together and give them a chance. Enjoy.

Ryder ducked into cover to avoid another destructive beam from an Observer. She lifted her assault rifle over the top of the small, remnant wall, blind firing at her enemies. A powerful biotic explosion triggered to the left of her position; Peebee and Cora had timed their attacks together, the Remnant blasting to pieces, synthetic debris scattering the area. 

“I think that was the last of them, nice work,” Ryder complimented, holding her side where her ribs ached thanks to a nasty hit she took earlier. She caught her breath back from the battle, limping over to Cora who was dusting herself off after the fight. 

“You okay?” Cora asked, her usual observant nature spotting the pathfinder’s body language. 

“I’ll be fine. Let’s get out of here,” she said. Cora nodded in agreement, taking one last look around the Remnant structure. 

They had located the impressive vault on Elaaden, the entrance well hidden beneath vast sand dunes. Ryder had been interested in exploring the underground facility in case they discovered new information on the Remnant, or found something of value. So far, the only notable discovery were several angry Nullifiers that hadn’t been all too pleased with them for breaking and entering. The fight against the seemingly never-ending wave of machines had been long and arduous, leaving the three teammates exhausted to say the least.

“Come on,” Ryder said, turning to backtrack their steps to the gravity well. 

“Hey, looks like there’s some remtech over there! Lemme just grab it real quick.” 

Ryder heard Peebee’s sudden exclamation, prompting her to stop walking and turn quickly. The young asari was rushing down one of the unexplored paths towards a large container with a glyph flickering above it. In her eagerness to grab its contents, Peebee failed to notice what was patrolling behind it. 

“Peebee, wait!” Ryder warned, but she was already too late. 

Peebee came to a stumbling halt, her eyes, once bright with excitement, wide with panic, as she spotted the non-hostile Destroyer at the exact moment it saw her. The machine’s large figure loomed over her, emitting a deep, electronic rumble that sent a tremor through the floor as it scanned her, identifying her as a threat. 

Peebee knew she needed to run, duck, dodge, fight...do anything but her body was frozen in place, her legs refusing to move. The Remnant stirred into action, aiming its two turret arms at her, preparing to fire. Peebee squeezed her eyes shut, wrapping her arms around her head in a fruitless attempt to protect herself. 

Before Ryder could react, a deep blue blur shot past her. Cora charged straight at the Destroyer from an impressive distance, stopping directly in front of Peebee. The biotic lifted her arms, a strained cry tearing from her as she used every ounce of strength to form a barrier around the two of them. Peebee gasped, her eyes shooting open to find Cora, shielding her from harm. 

“Go!” Cora urged through clenched teeth. Her arms trembled from the effort to maintain the dome, her face contorting with tension as the Destroyer’s rapid fire made contact with it. Peebee jumped to her feet and broke into a run; she didn’t need to be told twice.

“You alright?” Ryder asked hurriedly once Peebee caught up to her, resting her hands on her knees, breathing heavily. 

“Yeah, I’m good, but what about-” she panted out, looked over her shoulder towards Cora in time to watch her detonate the barrier, sending a burst of biotic energy forward. The Destroyer shook as the force of the blast struck it head on, stunning it long enough to give Cora time to flee. “Nevermind!” Peebee finished with a relieved grin, balancing on the balls of her feet, eager to keep running but waiting for Cora to reach them first. 

Ryder rushed over to lift one of Cora’s arms over her shoulders; Peebee quickly took her other arm to keep her upright. They heard the Destroyer rumble with irritation behind them, shaking off its hit. Peebee looked over at Ryder nervously.

“Time to go!” Ryder reiterated, moving as fast as she could while supporting Cora’s weight. The huntress let out a groan of pain, but managed to stay on her feet with their help. The three didn’t stop until they were safely through the gravity well and out of the vault, gasping for air and clutching at stitches. The dark door sealed shut behind them, securing their safe escape.

Ryder suddenly felt the weight over her shoulder slacken considerably. 

“Shit! Ryder, she passed out.” Peebee struggled to hold up the weight against her as Cora’s legs gave out. Her head lolled forwards as she slipped unconscious. 

“Tempest we need immediate extraction from my location; have Lexi on standby,” Ryder ordered over her comm channel. Peebee couldn’t hold Cora up, eventually giving in, trying to lay her down gently against the sand. Peebee fell onto her knees next to the huntress, exhaustion finally catching up to her too.

“She’s gonna be okay, right?” Peebee asked, her words coming out in an anxious rush.

“She’ll be fine, don’t worry. I’m sure after plenty of rest she’ll be back on her feet in no time,” Ryder reassured her friend, who looked guilty from the state Cora was in. 

“You sound just like T’Perro. Think you’ve been spending too much time in medbay again,” Peebee joked in an attempt to lighten the mood and deflect away from her worry. 

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Ryder agreed, staying on guard while they waited for Kallo to pinpoint a suitable LZ. 

With Ryder on lookout, Peebee’s gaze remained on Cora the entire time. She looked terrible. Her complexion was ghostly white, even under Elaaden’s heat, and her forehead was sticky with sweat, her fringe plastered against it. Her face was covered in dirt, a large cut on her cheekbone from their endless rounds against the Remnant. Peebee swallowed the lump in her throat, lifting a hand to brush Cora’s hair off her face, to make the huntress more comfortable; not that she even knew what was going on right now anyway, but that wasn’t the point. 

Ryder glanced over, smiling slightly from the way Peebee was looking at Cora. “Peebee, you’re staring,” she pointed out, watching with satisfaction as Peebee’s cheeks grew a deep shade of blue. The remtech expert quickly dropped her hand away from Cora’s hair, scowling at Ryder. 

“No I am not! I was just thinking she looks really relaxed when she’s sleeping, that’s all. Well, okay, she’s not exactly sleeping but, whatever, you know what I mean,” Peebee rambled.

“Hey, no judgement here. She did technically save your life back there. It was kind of romantic, if you think about it,” Ryder teased with a smirk, unthreatened by her friend who was now getting on her feet again. “The way she charged in to protect you like that, without even a second thought, just like a hero, huh?” Ryder continued, letting out a chuckle when Peebee shoved her. 

“Shut it, Ryder,” Peebee demanded, but the blush on her face told Ryder everything she needed to know. 

*****

Cora Harper finally returned to the realm of consciousness, her light brown eyes fluttering open slowly. She moved to sit up too quickly, feeling a guiding palm against her shoulder easing her back down against the medical bed she was lying on. 

“Not so fast, Lieutenant,” Lexi’s calm voice broke the silent hum of the Tempest in motion. Gathering her bearings, Cora’s gaze focused on the asari doctor as she tried to remember what happened, grimacing from the dull throb at the back of her head. 

“The others, are they alright?” Cora managed to exhale, attempting to sit up again, only much slower this time. Lexi’s hand dropped from Cora’s shoulder, allowing the woman to move. 

“They’re both fine. They were a little tired but nothing a good rest couldn’t fix,” Lexi explained, making note of how Cora’s priority was to check on her friends before she asked about her own condition - as selfless as always, Lexi thought. “Look here,” she directed, making Cora follow her fingers to check her cognitive function. 

“How long was I out?” Cora asked, following the doctor’s fingers with her eyes. 

“Roughly ten hours.” Cora grunted in disapproval, earning a raised eyebrow from the doctor. “Given your condition when you were brought into medbay, ten hours is a fast recovery time, all things considered. Don’t be so hard on yourself,” Lexi added. 

Cora said nothing, looking down at the floor, clearly embarrassed that Lexi had noticed. She had a bad habit of punishing herself for what she could have done better instead of praising what she’d done right. “Can you tell me what happened?” Lexi continued, to check Cora’s memory. 

“We were about to leave the vault and then…” Cora frowned as she thought back, “Peebee was in danger, so I tried to shield her with my biotics. Not sure what I did exactly, but it hurt like hell. I...don’t remember much else.” Lifting her arm slowly to rub her neck, Cora groaned where her muscles felt like rock beneath her fingers. 

“Yes, Ryder explained the situation to me. She said that you used a biotic charge, to reach your teammate, from a long distance away. You created a protective shield to stop a Destroyer from attacking her, then detonated the sphere to allow yourself and Peebee time to escape. It seemed you lost consciousness due to the strain on your body and mind,” Lexi explained, watching Cora carefully for any reactions.

Cora let out a sigh, closing her eyes as she continued to rub her sore neck. “That would explain why it feels like I’ve been hit by the Nomad a few times,” she joked dryly. 

“Quite. While you were resting I worked on easing some of the tightness in your muscles with some specialist medi-gel. I can provide more if the muscle pain becomes unbearable, but I would recommend allowing your body time to recover on its own,” Lexi paused. “Perhaps a massage would help, if you can find a volunteer,” she suggested. “I’m certain if you asked, Jaal would be happy to assist,” Lexi added with a small smile. Cora chuckled. 

“I’m sure he would. Thanks, Lexi. I’ll get back to my duties.” Standing carefully from the bed, Cora gently rolled her shoulders to loosen them, heading for the door. 

“Just doing my job. Oh, and Lieutenant?” Cora halted right as the door slid open. She looked back at Lexi, who met her gaze, her smile from before nowhere to be seen. “What you did was very dangerous. Pushing your biotics to their limit like that can leave permanent muscle damage and, in some severe cases, even brain damage.”

Cora’s expression remained stoic as she listened to Lexi lightly scold her. “I’m aware that you acted on instinct to protect your teammate, but however admirable that may be, in the future I would advise against it. At least not from such a distance,” Lexi finished with a knowing look. 

Cora exhaled a deep breath.

“Understood,” she replied, inclining her head before she left the medbay. 

_What was I supposed to do, just let Peebee get hurt, maybe even killed? There was no time, I had to do...something._ Cora thought to herself as she walked through the ship. She could hear Liam, Jaal and Peebee laughing about something in the crew quarters, likely getting up to no good which was usually the case when those three got together. Nobody seemed to notice as Cora headed for the bio lab to check on her plants. 

_Hm, I did rush in without thinking, I guess it was kind of reckless._ Cora frowned to herself. She couldn’t explain it, but the sight of Peebee, helpless before the Destroyer, had set something off inside her that ignited action. Cora hadn’t thought about it, she just moved on instinct. _It was a little unnerving, to lose control like that. Must just be the effect she has on me. That could be...a problem. No point trying to figure it out now; what’s done is done._ Cora closed her eyes, rubbing her forehead in an attempt to quieten her mind.

Inside the crew quarters, Peebee heard footsteps walking past outside. While Liam was occupied with laughing at Jaal’s terrible jokes, Peebee leapt up from where she was sitting cross legged on the floor, peeking down the corridor. As she suspected, Peebee could see the back of Cora’s figure, headed towards the bio lab. 

Peebee smiled, happy to see the Lieutenant was finally awake. She’d been asking Ryder to ask Lexi to update her on Cora’s condition almost every hour since the huntress was out of action. Lexi quickly grew suspicious of Ryder’s pestering and figured out what was going on. She’d told Peebee off for avoiding her and said that ‘if she wanted to know about Lieutenant Harper’s condition, she should stop being childish and come and ask herself’. 

“Hey, guys, I’ll be back later, don’t get into any trouble without me, okay?” Peebee declared, waving to the boys before she dashed off down the corridor. 

Just as Cora was about to open the door to the bio lab, she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. She had heard the clumsy footsteps following her for a few seconds but had decided to pretend they weren’t there and hope they’d go away. Turning quickly on her heel, Cora was almost nose to nose with Peebee, who had forgotten to stop walking now she had finally caught up. 

“Oh, hey Cora! Sorry,” she rambled awkwardly.

Cora tried to side step to avoid a collision with the asari, catching Peebee’s arms to steady her and stop her running headfirst into her. 

“Hi, don’t worry,” she muttered just as awkwardly, quickly dropping her hands away. 

“I just wanted to say thanks, for helping me out, back at the vault,” Peebee said, trying to act casual, as if it was no big deal. In reality, it meant a lot to her. Cora hadn’t even stopped to think about her own safety, even if they weren’t exactly friends. 

“You’re welcome. Next time just maybe think it through before running off on your own,” Cora answered tiredly, turning to open the bio lab door. 

Peebee wrinkled her nose from the tiny lecture; it was expected from Cora, she was used to the Lieutenant’s uptight attitude by now. “Yeah, yeah,” she waved it off. “Your biotics are pretty strong, you know. That was kind of impressive; until you passed out,” Peebee tried to bite her tongue after saying ‘impressive’ but the rest had slipped out before she could help it. 

Cora felt her muscles tense up from the reminder, trying not to wince. She sucked in a calming breath; “okay, thanks?” she said blankly, stepping slightly inside the lab. 

Peebee ignored the hints that Cora didn’t want to talk, moving to linger in the doorway. “Shame about the remtech though, could have been some great stuff in there.” Cora halted, her body rigid. Peebee slowly tilted her head to one side, picking up on the growing tension. 

“Are you kidding me?” Cora turned to glare at Peebee who simply grinned at her and shrugged. 

“What? Oh relax, Matriarch. You’re always so damn serious.” Peebee wasn’t sure how she had gone from trying to say thanks to Cora to winding her up. It seemed she just couldn’t help herself; pushing Cora’s buttons was just too much fun. 

“Or maybe you’re not serious enough,” the Lieutenant retorted, taking a step towards Peebee. She was still wearing a wicked grin, which only seemed to grow from getting a rise out of Cora, especially when the powerful biotic was giving her such an intense glare. 

“Maybe it’s not your fault, maybe you just never learned how to have fun from all those asari commandos you hung out with,” Peebee teased with a smirk, raising her eyebrows as Cora let out a scoff of disbelief from Peebee's attitude, shaking her head. 

“I know how to have fun; I just don’t prioritize it over the safety of my friends,” the blonde shot back. Peebee looked momentarily offended by the statement. Cora clenched her jaw, trying to ignore how good it felt to get a reaction out of her. 

“Are we friends now, Cora?” Peebee asked sarcastically in a sweet voice, recovering quickly from the huntress’s low blow. 

Cora could feel anger building inside. Despite her aching muscles, her clenched fists started to flicker biotic blue, lighting up her arms. Peebee could feel the crackle of energy in the air. She chewed on her lower lip, her green eyes slowly trailing over Cora’s glowing body. 

“What are you trying to accomplish, Peebee?” Cora demanded fiercely, feeling heat against her cheeks from being so evidently checked out. _Why is she looking at me like that?_ Cora thought, her face burning.

“I’m trying to help you,” Peebee nonchalantly answered. 

“Help me do what?” Cora questioned with irritation. 

Peebee paused for dramatic effect before she leaned closer. 

“Remove the stick from up your ass,” she explained with a grin. 

As quick as a flash, Cora’s entire body lit up blue as she charged at the other woman, pinning her against the research center outside of the bio lab. Peebee let out an ‘oof’ as she hit one of the terminals. They were inches apart and Cora could see Peebee’s gleeful satisfaction shown in the wild grin on her face. Peebee felt a flare of excitement ignite elsewhere from Cora’s warm, heavy breaths against her mouth. She let out a laugh from Cora’s complete loss of control, her eyes alight with desire and awe; she’d seen the extent of Cora’s power, and she loved it. 

“Now this is what I’m talking about,” Peebee praised, her heart racing from their close proximity. Cora bristled again from her remark, pressing her body harder against Peebee. 

“Shut up,” she growled out. Her demand worked like a charm. She heard Peebee’s breath hitch in her throat, a tiny, high-pitched noise slipping free from being pressed so firmly against the terminal. Cora watched how Peebee shifted under her, her eyes half closed in an expression that looked suspiciously like pleasure. 

She’s enjoying this… Cora thought, her heart rate climbing faster as the realisation hit her that she was enjoying it too. Her hands were either side of Peebee’s hips, fingers pressed firmly against the desk, effectively keeping her right where she wanted her. Cora could see the different emotions behind Peebee’s gaze, which was locked firmly on hers. She was waiting with eager anticipation for whatever it was Cora planned to do to her. 

Cora’s gaze dropped slowly to Peebee’s mouth; her lips were slightly parted where she was panting softly, her own eyes drifting down to Cora’s lips before flicking back up to her fierce, pretty eyes. Cora knew what she wanted to do. What they both wanted her to do. She wanted to kiss Peebee’s stupid mouth and make sure she stayed quiet a while longer. The air around them was sparking with biotic energy, flickering and crackling from their tension. 

Cora leaned in, a subtle tilt of her head as their noses brushed, their lips almost touching... 

“Has anyone ever told you you’re sexy when you get mad?” Peebee murmured against her mouth, her lips upturned into a grin. 

Cora came crashing back down to reality, broken out of her hormone-induced trance as she realized what they’d been about to do. As usual, Peebee’s big mouth had gotten her into trouble and ruined the moment. Cora pushed her hands backwards off the research center, stepping away from Peebee, who pouted in disappointment from the sudden lack of Cora against her. Cora couldn’t stop herself from glaring at her, her chest heaving where she tried to calm down. 

“Fuck you,” she breathed out, voice unsteady. 

“That can be arranged,” Peebee flirted, giving Cora a suggestive wink, biting down on her lip. 

Cora felt her face flush red, a throb between her thighs only sparking irritation at herself this time. There she was again, losing control, all thanks to Peebee, and the damn woman seemed to be getting off on it. _Like you’re any better right now,_ she reminded herself, outwardly scowling. 

“I’m done,” Cora lifted her hands up, turning on her heel to storm inside the bio lab. 

“What’s the matter Cora? Can’t finish what you started?!” Peebee called after her with a laugh.

The door to the bio lab slid shut behind the huntress, and Peebee shrugged, pleased with herself. She felt like she was on a high from what just happened. She turned to run down the corridor, doing a little skip and jump as she made her way to her escape pod, filled with energy after their fiery confrontation. 

_Cora almost kissed me! So our tension really could have been chemistry all along. Huh, interesting. I never thought she’d actually do anything about it. I mean, I’ve caught her staring a few times but I figured she was just in commando mode or something. Wow...and Ryder said she wasn’t into women, ha, called that one forever ago._

Once she arrived at the escape pod, her mind still a whirlwind of thoughts, Peebee opened the door, heading for the pod’s controls which she’d asked SAM for. Once gravity was off, Peebee instantly relaxed. As she felt her body begin to float, she closed her eyes, her mind racing with more questions, a smile on her face as she replayed what just happened over and over. 

Peebee knew she found Cora attractive, she’d figured that out almost immediately when they met, with the barrel of Cora’s shotgun pointed at her face. The huntress’s features were both cute and hot, Peebee had no idea how she pulled that one off. Not to mention her hair was always so pretty looking. Even though she hadn’t seen it much, the tiny glimpses Peebee had managed to catch of Cora’s smile were beautiful, and her voice was kinda sexy too. 

And despite the stick up her ass, Cora cared a lot about the rest of the team, even Peebee, if what happened at the vault was any indication. Underneath her military attitude, Peebee could tell Cora was a big softie, she just protected her soft parts with a ton of armour. Not that Peebee could blame her, really; being soft usually led to being hurt. Peebee felt her heart pounding as she imagined Cora smiling at her, wondering what it’d be like to see her softer side. 

“Ah crap,” Peebee groaned in annoyance, recognising exactly what it was she was feeling. Had it really taken her this long to notice? _But what if Cora really does hate me and this is all in my head? Damn it, Peebee, stop thinking so much, ugh!_

Peebee exhaled a sigh, squeezing her eyes shut even harder than they already were to stop her brain going into overdrive. The more she thought about it, the more she let doubt take the wheel, and the more annoyed she felt. She was Peebee, the remtech expert, explorer of Andromeda, free from any kind of commitment with no care in the galaxy to hold her back. So why was she letting Cora Harper get her so down?

*****

“Damn it,” Cora cursed under her breath as the stem in her hands almost snapped from how hard she was holding it. Tending to the plants wasn’t going well, given what had just transpired between herself and Peebee, it probably made more sense to take a breather.

Problem was, the longer Cora let herself sit quietly and try to calm down, the more her mind got away from her and drifted to places she really didn’t want to visit. “Okay, Harper, just breathe,” Cora murmured to herself, her trembling hands lowering from the plants, who were silently thankful to be free of her death grip.

Cora sank into the nearby chair with an exhausted sigh, the tension in her body easing off into an ache that seemed to seep into her bones. She tried not to close her eyes, afraid she’d end up dozing off and wasting more time that could be spent on reports. She still had so much work to catch up on from the ten hours she’d already lost, thanks to…

 _No, it wasn’t her fault. I chose to run after her. Peebee didn’t put me at risk, I did that to myself._ Cora’s rational side acknowledged, but, _what just happened between us? Peebee always tries to get a rise out of me but this time she was blatantly flirting, I’m sure of it, and she wanted me to-_ Cora shook her head, running her fingers through her hair, resting her forehead in her palms. _You’re conveniently leaving out the fact that you wanted to kiss her just as much._

Cora swore again, fingers tightening around her head. How many times had she told herself she wasn’t attracted to women? Or asari. Why did she keep pushing it aside, pretending it wasn’t there when it was? Would it really be so bad to just admit that she found their species attractive? _Yeah, it would. It makes it look like the reason I respect them is because I’m interested in more than just their way of life, their principles. It looks bad, disrespectful even._

Cora convinced herself, her old mantra coming back, only this time, it wasn’t quite so strong. _Peebee isn’t like most asari though. She’s different. She’s crazy, and childish and reckless and...and funny and charismatic and smart. And Ryder’s mentioned she can be sweet when she wants to be, I just- why can’t I get her off my mind?_

“This is stupid,” the huntress muttered to herself, reaching to grab a datapad and work on her reports for the Pathfinder, pushing all thoughts of Pelessaria B’Sayle aside. 

*****

A few days later, Ryder had dismissed the team for some rest and recuperation while Kallo piloted them back to the Nexus. Vetra had eventually given in to the pleas of a desperate Peebee, who had begged her to help steal some of Liam’s ‘secret’ stash of beers. The asari had told Vetra she owed her one, before heaving the six-pack in her arms off to the meeting room where she hoped nobody would find her. 

An hour flew by and Peebee was sitting with her head resting against the meeting room’s desk, empty beer bottles strewn across the floor beside her slumped figure. She was mumbling to herself, a half-finished bottle clutched in one hand. 

Lexi was making her way to the meeting room to fetch a datapad, when she paused, hearing someone muttering about ‘pretty humans and remtech’. “Peebee?” she called questioningly, seeing a blue hand dart out and wave at her from the other side of the room. Lexi followed the hand around the circular shaped desk until she found the younger asari. 

“Ugh, it’s you ,” Peebee slurred out, hiccuping loudly which made her giggle. 

“Are you drunk?” Lexi asked incredulously, staring at the numerous bottles. 

“No, I am not brunk, you ditch,” she waved her beer bottle threateningly at Lexi, sloshing some of the liquid over herself. “How dare you question me! ME, the Remnant Master of Andromeda!” she yelled hysterically. Lexi brought a hand to her face and let out a long sigh. 

“Come on, that’s enough; you need to sleep it off,” she offered her hand to Peebee who stuck her tongue out in a raspberry. 

“You’re not my mom, go away,” Peebee loudly declared, unaware of how much noise she was making.

“Pelessaria stop being such a child and stand up!” Lexi scolded with irritation, her own voice raised slightly. 

“Nooo, my true identity is revealed! Now everyone will know who the Remnant Master is. It’s all your fault,” she started to sob dramatically. 

“I can’t bloody deal with this,” Lexi muttered to herself in exasperation. 

“Need some help?” Cora asked politely, trying to hold back her amusement. 

After hearing the not so subtle exchange while leaving the bio lab, Cora decided to head up to the meeting room, and see what exactly was going on, in case the doctor’s patience finally snapped. Lexi turned to make eye contact with her, relief spreading across her face. 

“Peebee’s refusing to sleep off the alcohol in her system. Maybe she’ll listen to you Cora, you seem to know how to handle her better than I do,” Lexi sighed. 

Cora cleared her throat from the observation. No comment there, she thought to herself. 

“Don’t worry Lexi, I’ll deal with Peebee,” Cora offered. The doctor gave her a thankful smile and a nod, hurrying off with the datapad in her hand. 

Cora tilted her head to look around the corner, glancing down at Peebee’s sorry figure sprawled out on the floor. She was pouting, her eyes watery, lower lip trembling. She looked up at Cora with sad, round, puppy eyes and the huntress felt her heart skip a beat from how cute she looked. 

“It’s my hero,” Peebee mumbled sheepishly. Cora tried not to laugh as she bent down next to Peebee, her gaze shifting to the bottles around her. She was definitely drunk. 

“I thought you were the hero of this galaxy, Remnant Master,” she teased. 

Peebee’s eyes widened and she sat up with renewed energy. “You know that I’m the Remnant Master?” she asked in surprise. 

Cora bit the inside of her cheek to contain the chuckle trying to escape. “That’s right,” she confirmed. “I’m quite the fan,” she added, going along with Peebee’s drunken scenario. 

Peebee smiled proudly. “Yeah? Well, aren’t I lucky having such a gorgeous fan?” she flirted, her words slurred and drawn out. Cora shook her head, ignoring the sensation of a blush forming. 

“Come on, let’s go for a walk,” Cora offered her hand. 

Peebee eagerly reached for her, almost falling over one of the bottles as she got to her feet. She squealed in a panic as she lost her balance. Cora grabbed her to hold her upright, a small chuckle escaping before she could hold it back this time. “You okay?” she asked between a few more breathless laughs. Peebee’s face went purple, her cheeks burning brightly from her embarrassment. 

“That was scary! You saved me,” Peebee said in awe, her blush deepening from the lovely sound of Cora’s laughter. 

“That’s twice now,” Cora reminded her with a smile, slipping Peebee’s arm through her own, starting to slowly guide her to the ramp down to the research center. 

For a while they were quiet as they walked. Cora took a glance in Peebee’s direction, catching the asari staring at her. When their eyes met, Peebee tore her gaze away quickly. She was surprisingly shy when she was drunk, Cora thought. 

“You’re really pretty,” Peebee babbled suddenly. 

“Oh...uh, thanks,” Cora smiled at her coyly.

Peebee couldn’t stop staring this time, even if she wanted to. “Wow…” she whispered. 

Cora bit her lip, ignoring her pounding heart, leading Peebee towards the crew quarters. 

“Alright, Peebee, on the bed,” Cora gestured to her bunk. Peebee gasped. 

“Cora Harper! Take me to dinner first, then you can take me to bed,” she giggled, leaning into her. Cora couldn’t help but let out an amused breath. 

“You’re quite something, Peebee, I’ll give you that,” she murmured, more to herself than her companion, who was grinning at her. This one was nothing like the expression she wore a few days ago during their confrontation. Cora, much to her dismay, kept thinking Peebee could be unfairly and utterly adorable when she wanted to be. 

“Come on, on you get,” Cora said again, motioning to her bed. Peebee had gone surprisingly quiet as Cora lightly pushed her shoulders to make her sit down. 

“Hey, look, I’m in your bed,” Peebee announced, trying to wink at Cora but forgetting how to do it. She frowned, blinking with one eye then the other. Cora shook her head, chuckling again. 

“Just try to get some sleep. You’ll feel better,” she said.

“Yes ma’am,” Peebee saluted with two fingers, enjoying the way it made Cora roll her eyes. 

Peebee’s attention was drawn to her leather jacket. It had fresh beer stains and suddenly she seemed to realise how gross it was. She started to try and tug it off herself, getting stuck inside it, her complaints muffled by the leather. Cora had to catch a laugh with her hand when Peebee’s head popped out of the jacket again.

“Help a girl out here would ya?” Peebee asked with puppy eyes. 

Cora sighed, making a mental reminder to never let Peebee find out how much that look made her go soft; Peebee would absolutely use it to her advantage way too often. There was no point even attempting to say no to her when she was making that face.

“Only if you say please,” Cora sarcastically said, but stepped closer to where Peebee was struggling, leaning down to help. Peebee had gone quiet again, resigned to watch Cora taking off her jacket for her. Peebee held her breath, her eyes following Cora’s hands as they undid the clasp at her chest. After she’d removed Peebee’s belt, Cora could unzip the jacket, averting her gaze, when it fell open to reveal Peebee’s cut off, black undershirt. 

Peebee grinned when Cora refused to look at her. “Not gonna check me out, Cora? Go on, I don’t mind,” Peebee offered. Cora snorted, shaking her head, her face growing warm.

“Just take the damn thing off will you?” she answered when Peebee purposely didn’t pull her arms free.

“Aw, you’re no fun,” Peebee pouted, but, Cora noticed, still did as she was told, pulling her arms through until they’d successfully removed the garment and left it by the bed.

“Here, I’ll give you some medi-gel, it should help your system deal with the alcohol,” Cora explained, her omni-tool lighting up as she administered a small dose. Peebee yawned as the warmth of the medi-gel spread through her body, letting out a long, content sigh. “Now rest,” Cora stood up, turning to leave.

Peebee grabbed her wrist lightly. 

“Cora, wait.” 

Cora looked back at her for a moment. Peebee stood up from the bed and pulled Cora’s arm to turn her around. Peebee brought her closer, one hand coming to rest on Cora’s hip, while the other cupped the side of her face to guide her down to meet her lips. Cora let out a sound of surprise as Peebee’s warm mouth pressed against her own in a sudden, slow kiss. 

Peebee’s eyes closed, her tongue running gently over Cora’s lower lip. Cora felt her eyelids grow heavy, a tingling warmth settling inside her. Resist, pull away, she’s drunk! Cora’s mind protested but her body wasn’t paying attention. She finally closed her eyes, returning the kiss gently, her hands resting against Peebee’s shoulders. 

When Cora felt Peebee’s tongue press eagerly against her lips, she knew she should have broken the kiss...but she didn’t. Her mouth parted, allowing Peebee entrance, shivering as their tongues met and languidly began to slide over each other. Peebee let out a soft moan, causing Cora to squeeze down against her shoulders. They only broke apart to breathe. Cora inhaled deeply, her cheeks flushed. Peebee’s eyes were still closed when Cora’s fluttered open. 

“Holy crap,” Peebee murmured in amazement from their intense kiss. 

“I...I should go,” Cora stammered, her mind a mess of feelings. 

“What, I don’t get any more?” Peebee asked hopefully, her eyes opening, a signature grin back in place. Cora rolled her eyes but found herself letting out an amused breath down her nose. 

“No,” she said bluntly, her mouth curving to the side to resist a smile. 

“Guess I’ll let my dreams do the work for me then,” Peebee teased with a laugh, flopping back down against Cora’s bed, getting comfortable. “See you around, Cora.”

“Night, Peebee,” Cora smiled, waving her goodnight. Peebee returned the smile, snuggling into Cora’s bed. 

“Goodnight,” she murmured softly, watching the Lieutenant walking away.

*****

Roughly ten hours later, Pelessaria B’Sayle returned to the realm of consciousness. With a tired groan she slowly opened her eyes, squinting from the Tempest’s daytime lighting. A slightly unfamiliar but pleasant smell surrounded her as she tried to figure out where she was. 

_I’m in Cora’s bed,_ she thought, memories of the previous night flooding back. 

It was then that Peebee realised the lovely aroma filling her senses was Cora’s perfume mixed with her natural scent. She recalled the huntress’s eyes, sparkling with amusement, and then wide with surprise when their lips had met. 

“Oh yeah, I kissed Cora,” Peebee casually reminded herself as she woke up properly. “Oh shit, I kissed Cora!” Peebee sat bolt upright, trying to stand up while still in the bed, forgetting she was on a bottom bunk. She whacked her head on the bed above her. “Fuck,” she let out a painful yelp, grabbing her head, rubbing the spot she had smacked. 

“Peebee? Are you alright?” Jaal’s voice asked from the other end of the crew quarters. 

“I’m great, Jaal, thanks for asking,” Peebee replied, falling face first against Cora’s pillow with a muffled sigh. I wonder if she’s mad at me about it, Peebee pondered, but quickly pushed aside the trail of thought before it was too much to deal with. 

For the rest of the morning, Peebee tried to avoid Cora, who seemed to have decided to do the same. When Ryder suggested that they work on their current Remtech project together, Peebee had jumped at the chance, eager for a distraction. Ryder took her enthusiasm in stride, she was used to Peebee’s high energy after all, and didn’t think much of it.

Cora, however, was having a much harder time trying to keep herself occupied. Ever since her drunken kiss with Peebee the night before, the Lieutenant hadn’t been able to focus on her duties for longer than ten minutes at a time. She was usually so efficient, it was starting to grate on her nerves. Re-reading the same line of one of her emails for the fifth time, Cora eventually gave up with a sigh, leaning back in her chair.

 _This is getting ridiculous,_ Cora thought to herself, squeezing her eyes shut. _I think...god, I think I might like Peebee._ The realisation felt as if someone had thrown a bucket of ice-cold water over her head. Cora’s eyes shot open and she hastily stood up.

“Oh no,” she groaned, starting to pace the bio lab, running her fingers through her hair. 

Military training had helped Cora to control her emotions in times of danger or stress. It kept her focused, but when she wasn’t working or out on the field, her feelings did their best to escape from the well-tended cage she kept them trapped inside. Now, thanks to Peebee’s alcohol-induced decision last night, any attempt to keep her feelings locked up was ultimately doomed to fail - she’d lost the key. 

After a difficult internal battle, Cora decided she needed another perspective. She wasn’t going to figure anything out by running in circles in her head all day. There was only one person aboard the Tempest who was adept at deciphering and expressing their emotions. So, Cora took the risk and headed for the tech lab.

“Jaal, do you have a minute?” Cora stood nervously in the doorway, rubbing her hands together as she tried to gather her racing thoughts. Jaal looked up from where he was working. 

“Of course, one moment,” Jaal placed his tools down, turning to give Cora his full attention with a welcoming smile. “How can I help?” he asked kindly.

Cora exhaled a tired, depressed sigh. Jaal’s smile faltered, forming a frown of concern. “Something is bothering you; weighing heavy on your heart,” it wasn’t a question but an observation. 

“Yeah,” Cora nodded, impressed by Jaal’s intuition. “I…” Cora hesitated, staring at the floor, terrified of what she was about to admit. Saying it out loud made it so... real . “I think I’m developing feelings for someone,” she finished. Jaal’s expression softened. 

“Ah, ‘feelings’. Then, it is love weighing heavy on your heart,” he said in an understanding tone. Cora felt her face grow hot, a fantastic blush burning across her cheeks. Jaal tried not to notice.

“I didn’t say anything about love!” she argued sharply before covering her face with her hands to fend off her defensive response. “Sorry,” she murmured a moment later, dropping her hands away so she could meet Jaal’s eyes and let him see her apology was sincere. Jaal smiled. Cora couldn’t hold their eye contact, afraid he’d see just how vulnerable she felt about it all. 

“It’s okay,” Jaal took a step closer so he could lightly touch Cora’s shoulder to urge her to look at him again. “Tell me about your feelings. Why are you conflicted over them?” he asked carefully. 

Cora thought about it for a while. Jaal was silent, giving her time, allowing her to find the words she was searching for. 

“I’m conflicted because sometimes I...clash with the person in question. We disagree on a lot of things and their attitude frustrates me. They can be immature and reckless,” she explained, thinking back to the Remnant vault, the image of Peebee running off down the corridor, straight into danger, returning to her mind. 

“I see,” Jaal said, waiting for Cora to continue, sensing she had more to share. 

“It isn’t all bad though. They’re also creative, adventurous, funny and...well, they can be cute when they want to be. I don’t usually say it, but I like having them around,” Cora paused, embarrassed by everything she was revealing, even if it was true. “We’re sort of, opposites, really. That’s what I’m worried about,” Cora confessed, reminded of the apparent stick up her ass, from Peebee’s own words. 

“You know, Cora, in many Angaran relationships it is quite common for opposite personalities to attract. Their differences can make up for what the other lacks. Although difficult at first, once relationships of that nature develop, deepen and truly understand each other, they are often everlasting. Our differences make us stronger when we work with them, not against them,” Jaal expressed. Cora stared at him, blinking slowly as she took in everything he had said. 

It actually makes a lot of sense; I guess I never thought of it that way . “Thanks, Jaal, I appreciate the words of wisdom,” Cora smiled, a weight lifting from her shoulders - a weight she’d placed on herself from being so stubborn and refusing to face the truth about how she felt. Bidding Jaal farewell, Cora turned to leave.

“Good luck with your feelings; I hope she feels the same,” Jaal said sincerely.

Cora froze. 

“Jaal?” she said suspiciously, looking back to catch his eye. He smiled all-knowingly. 

“Yes?” he replied with feigned innocence. 

She had a feeling that somehow he knew who she’d been talking about. 

“Nevermind,” Cora muttered with a shake of her head and a smile. As he waved her goodbye, Cora murmured under her breath, “I hope so too, Jaal.”

*****

Cora headed for the bridge, and, when her back was turned to glance over her shoulder, walked straight into the person she happened to be looking for. Peebee’s arms were filled with datapads, which flew everywhere the moment they bumped into each other.

“Uh, whoops, didn’t see you there,” Peebee quickly tried to grab all of the datapads as they clattered to the floor. Cora bent down to help her. 

“It’s my fault, I wasn’t looking where I was going,” the huntress admitted, grabbing a few datapads Peebee had missed. They stood up in unison. Peebee took the datapads when Cora handed them over, returning them to the pile. 

“Thanks,” she mumbled, avoiding meeting Cora’s eyes. “So…” Peebee said, dragging it out to give herself time to think of what she was going to follow up with. 

“So,” Cora started to speak at the same time, trailing off. 

It wasn’t like the two of them to struggle to find something to say. Cora almost chuckled from how awkward they were being. Peebee shuffled her feet, feeling nervous energy building inside her, though she grinned from their jinx. 

“You go first,” Peebee said. 

“Are you feeling better?” Cora finally asked once she had managed to settle on something to say. 

“Yep, all better,” Peebee confirmed, moving towards the research center, hoping Cora would follow her. She was glad to see Cora walk in step beside her.

“Why did you drink so much anyway?” unable to stop her curiosity, the question had slipped out before Cora could help it. She wondered if that was how Peebee always felt when she’d accidentally say something. 

Peebee headed up to the meeting room, piling the datapads where Ryder had told her to chuck them temporarily. Cora followed her all the way up the ramp. She could tell Peebee was a bit embarrassed by the question, trying to decide if she should answer it or not. 

“Hey, how about a question for a question?” Peebee suggested with a nervous smile. 

Cora raised her eyebrows with interest. 

“Alright,” she accepted the terms. 

“But you have to answer first,” Peebee added the additional rules quickly before Cora changed her mind. Cora’s eyebrows remained risen; she shook her head but smirked. 

“Seems fair,” she said sarcastically, crossing her arms, “fine, ask.” 

“Why were you so nice to me yesterday?” Peebee babbled as if she was trying to get it over with quickly. Cora was taken aback by the question, a slightly startled expression taking shape on her face. Peebee felt her embarrassment grow from Cora’s apparent surprise. The huntress frowned in thought, trying to find an honest answer without revealing too much that might scare her off.

“I wanted to make sure you were alright, and after what happened last time we talked, well, I didn’t want to end up arguing,” pausing, Cora took it further, “and I was worried about you,” she confessed, inhaling a steady breath.

After a momentary silence, “okay, your turn,” Cora said, trying to meet Peebee’s eyes but finding the asari was avoiding them. Peebee shifted her weight from one foot to the other. 

“I wanted to get drunk because I was sad,” she finally revealed, shuffling uncomfortably where the urge to run away started to rise. 

Nope, you’re not running, it’s not going too badly yet so just, wait it out, Peebee...you can do this, she internally reassured herself, risking a glance at Cora. The blonde met her gaze, and Peebee felt her heart flutter from the sincere concern and gentle expression on Cora’s face. It was...new and Peebee hated how pretty Cora looked when she was worrying about her.

“Why were you sad?” Cora asked carefully, her voice filled with care, a tone she rarely used when she talked to Peebee. Cora couldn’t imagine the excitable asari being sad, just thinking about it made her heart squeeze uncomfortably. 

“That’s two questions,” Peebee pointed out. 

“Peebee,” Cora said in a warning tone. 

“Ugh, fine! I was sad because I thought you hated me. Happy now?” Peebee explained, barely able to stand still, staring at the wall of the ship - anywhere that wasn’t Cora. 

“What?” Cora stared in disbelief. 

Peebee started to mess with her wrists nervously, her attention dropping to the Tempest’s floor where she was still shifting her weight as if she planned to bolt at any second. 

I had no idea you cared so much about what I thought of you. “Peebee, I don’t...I don’t hate you,” Cora said softly, lifting her hand to rub the back of her neck. 

Peebee finally found the courage to look at Cora, a hopeful expression on her face, visible even beneath the dark mask she used as another way to hide a bit of herself from the world. 

“You don’t?” Peebee repeated in an unusually quiet voice. Cora met her gaze and gave her a reassuring smile; there was a look in her eyes that Peebee couldn’t place; all she knew was she wanted Cora to keep looking at her like that, like she was someone . 

“No, I don’t. Sometimes you drive me crazy, but I don’t hate you. Not even a little bit,” Cora affirmed with a confident nod, to show she was certain and was being honest. 

Peebee’s body language seemed to relax immediately. A ‘phew’ nearly slipped out, but she managed to hold it in, a wide grin spreading across her face instead. 

“Good to know!” Peebee said cheerily. “I, um, I don’t hate you either, by the way,” Peebee clarified with a flick of her wrist as if to show that it was obvious. 

Cora chuckled. “Good to know,” she echoed with a smile, heading down the ramp. 

Peebee quickly followed her, much to the blonde’s amusement. 

“Since you got two questions I have another one!” Peebee speedily announced, to stop the conversation from ending. As they walked towards the research center, Cora turned to give Peebee her full attention, waiting for the question. 

“Why did you kiss me?” Peebee asked. 

Cora felt her face grow warm. There it is. I knew we couldn’t avoid it forever, she thought.

“ _You_ kissed me,” Cora reminded, her expression unreadable. Peebee raised her eyebrows. 

“Yeah, but you kissed me back ,” she argued. 

“You were drunk!” Cora could feel the heat radiating off her face. 

“Was I?” Peebee gave her a sly grin that made Cora’s stomach feel weirdly pleasant. 

“I know that look; explain,” Cora demanded, waiting for Peebee to elaborate. 

“The medi-gel you gave to me worked like a charm. It fixed me up in, hm, let’s see, probably about three seconds. I wasn’t drunk when I kissed you,” she shrugged casually. 

“I should have known you weren’t drunk. Nobody’s kisses are that good when they’re off their face,” Cora sighed, covering her blushing face with one hand, as she thought back to the kiss. It hadn’t been sloppy at all, it had a measure of control that a drunk person would have lacked. 

“That good, huh?” Peebee winked, feeling proud from the accidental compliment. 

“Quiet,” Cora shoved her in the arm gently, making Peebee laugh. Cora couldn’t help but think how cute she sounded when she laughed like that. 

“I’m just messing with you, Matriarch,” Peebee said with a grin. 

“I noticed. You seem to like doing that,” Cora observed with a teasing smile. 

Peebee laughed again, this time a little nervously. 

A little while ago Cora might have been irritated by the remtech expert’s antics, but she was content to find she wasn’t annoyed at all, she was...relieved.

Peebee had kissed her intentionally; it wasn’t the influence of alcohol, it was a choice.

A comfortable silence fell between them. Cora looked down at the floor, one hand resting against the research center. Peebee was chewing on her lip, having an internal debate. Eventually, she broke the silence. 

“I need to thank you. For last night,” Peebee said with determination. Cora met her gaze. 

“No, you don’t,” she shook her head.

“I was a jerk to you before, even after you saved my life; and you still made sure I was okay yesterday. You didn’t have to do that,” Peebee’s expression was serious, her green eyes locked onto Cora’s brown.

“I know I didn’t have to, I wanted to,” Cora explained, “there’s nothing to thank me for.” Peebee’s expression relaxed into an appreciative smile from Cora’s words. 

“I’d still like to anyway. Let me return the favour,” Peebee insisted. 

“You really don’t have to, Peebee,” Cora could tell she wasn’t going to win. 

“You took care of me, now let me take care of you,” Peebee’s voice grew soft. 

She took a step closer to Cora, closing the distance between them.

Cora wasn’t stupid, she understood the meaning behind Peebee’s specific choice of words. Peebee’s eyes conveyed a new level of trust between them, and desire, as clear as the sky on a hot summer’s day back on Earth. Cora felt her heart ache with want. The concept of being intimate with Peebee made her face hot all over again. Cora swallowed, feeling her palms grow clammy and her heart race. Not wanting to come across too eager, her outside reaction remained casual. She decided to pretend she hadn’t picked up on what exactly Peebee was offering. 

“Well, Lexi did recommend a massage, to help ease some muscle tension. Maybe you could, uh, do that...for me?” Cora suggested awkwardly. 

Peebee smiled knowingly from Cora’s ‘innocent’ interpretation. “Not exactly what I was offering, but sure, I give great massages,” Peebee shrugged, acting as if she didn’t know Cora had misinterpreted her offer on purpose. 

“Really?” Cora raised a curious eyebrow. Peebee’s smile widened.

“Really,” she confirmed. 

“I didn’t expect that,” Cora admitted.

“Well, what can I say; I’m good with my hands,” Peebee flirted smoothly, winking at Cora. The huntress let out a slight laugh, much to Peebee’s enjoyment. “Come on,” Peebee took Cora’s hand, pulling her along the corridor. 

“What, now?” Cora asked in astonishment.

Peebee looked over her shoulder at her, chuckling from the blonde’s uncertainty. It was sweet seeing the side of Cora that wasn’t so self-assured. Peebee found her faltering confidence kind of endearing. So this is what she looks like under all that armour...

“Yeah, why not now? You got a hot date, Cora?” Peebee teased. Cora smirked.

“Not yet,” she countered smoothly, enjoying seeing Peebee blush fiercely, noticing how her laugh was slightly higher than usual, a subtle sign she was nervous.

That makes two of us, Cora thought to herself with a smile as she let Peebee tug her along towards the crew quarters. Thankfully the quarters were abandoned; most of the crew were on the Nexus for a break before the Tempest set out again. 

Peebee took Cora by the shoulders, pushing her towards her bed, making her sit down on it. Cora felt her heart quicken with excitement, though the rational side of her brain hadn’t relaxed yet. 

“What if someone sees us?” Cora whispered quietly, glancing around the bunk bed post to check nobody was going to burst inside and shout ‘aha caught you!’ or something equally ridiculous. 

“Sees our ‘perfectly innocent massage’, you mean?” Peebee said with a grin. 

Cora cursed under her breath. “Sometimes you’re too smart for your own good,” she complained.

“I know,” Peebee agreed, “now, let’s work on that tension, shall we?” 

She sat down on the bed next to Cora and within minutes, Peebee’s hands had managed to work her into a state of bliss. The blonde was breathing heavier, her eyelids hooded, feeling the asari’s nimble fingers pressing down against her shoulder muscles. 

A soft moan rose from Cora’s throat when Peebee rolled her thumbs against a particularly tight spot. Peebee could feel herself blushing from Cora’s reactions. She bit her lip, trying to focus on helping the huntress despite how distracting she was being. 

“How’s that?” Peebee asked carefully, her hands slowly sliding lower down to press against Cora’s back, beneath her shoulder blades. 

“God, it feels so good,” Cora admitted in a whisper, her voice thick with pleasure she didn’t even bother to hide. Peebee bit her lip harder. 

“Peebee?” Cora said softly. The remtech expert could feel her hands trembling. 

“Yeah?” she replied quietly, trying to keep her voice steady. 

“I want you,” Cora admitted in a low tone. 

Cora turned to face her, and when their eyes met, Peebee inhaled sharply. The desire was evident behind her pretty, bright eyes. For the first time, Peebee was speechless. Cora wasn’t lying; Peebee felt wanted . Her gaze darted anxiously from Cora to the bed they were sitting on.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to be nervous,” Cora said gently, lifting her hand to rest her palm against Peebee’s cheek. The asari closed her eyes, pressing her face further into Cora’s touch. 

“Too late,” Peebee whispered. Cora felt her heart skip. She knew what she wanted to do, what they both wanted her to do. Cora leaned closer, slowly pressing her lips against Peebee’s. 

Peebee reacted instantly, wrapping her arms around Cora’s neck. Cora’s hand slipped from Peebee’s face so that she could reach for her waist, tugging her into her lap. Peebee eagerly straddled Cora’s thighs, her mouth opening to allow the blonde’s tongue to meet hers, an appreciative moan slipping free. Cora felt a tingle down her spine from the sound. 

Peebee shivered, her hands resting against Cora’s shoulders. Their kisses grew harder, more urgent until they were breaking apart to catch their breath, noses brushing lightly. Peebee’s shaking hands dropped to tug the bottom of Cora’s initiative shirt, hinting she wanted it off. 

Cora smirked against Peebee’s lips, “getting impatient?” she teased, tickling Peebee’s mouth with her words. Peebee didn’t answer, her tongue licking lightly over Cora’s upper lip, making the huntress shift underneath her and try to kiss her again. Peebee leaned back on purpose, a victorious grin on her face when Cora grunted with disappointment.

“Now who’s impatient?” Peebee counter teased, before her surprised sound was swallowed by Cora’s mouth meeting hers in a kiss that told Peebee the huntress wasn’t going to let her have the upper hand. Aching in all the right places thanks to Cora’s show of confidence, Peebee returned the kiss hungrily, her fingers tightening around the huntress’s shirt.

“Take this thing off,” Peebee demanded breathlessly against Cora’s lips. Cora, feeling as if she was on fire, let Peebee have her way this time, moving to give the asari room to do what she wanted. Peebee slipped her hands underneath Cora’s shirt, her fingers grazing over Cora’s toned stomach.

“Fuck,” Peebee cursed, her face heating up until she was a deep shade of blue. Her hands roamed over the firm muscle, sending a throb right between her thighs that did nothing to help the state she was in. “So hot,” Peebee whispered. Cora grinned from Peebee’s reaction, she’d never heard her sound so turned on before; she was secretly flattered. 

“I’m glad you approve,” Cora commented, her breathing quickening from Peebee’s fingers trailing over her skin, her face as red as Peebee’s was blue. 

“Oh, I more than approve,” Peebee murmured, her voice thick with want. Peebee’s discovery seemed to spur her on as she yanked Cora’s shirt up. Cora moved her arms so Peebee could pull it over her head, chuckling when Peebee threw it carelessly across the room. Peebee was entranced by the huntress’s now exposed body, her green eyes roaming over the delectable subtlety of her toned figure.

“Touch me,” Cora urged, reaching to take Peebee’s hand in her own and guide her palm to her stomach. Peebee reached with her other hand too, rubbing her thumbs along the curve of Cora’s hips. Peebee felt the huntress’s reaction as she pushed up against her, her head falling back, a soft exhale giving away how aroused Cora was.

“So, Cora,” Peebee murmured, her hands drifting lower to tease around the waistband of her pants, “maybe I should take the lead; you know, show you how it’s done.” Cora’s head lifted up to meet Peebee’s gaze, and, as the asari hoped, she looked riled by her arrogant suggestion.

“Yeah? Think I can’t handle you, is that it?” Cora shot back, using her ‘commando’ voice that made Peebee grin with excitement, her body thrumming with heat. 

“Maybe; I’m not sure. Why don’t you give it a shot, lover?” Peebee challenged with a bounce of her eyebrows. Cora was quiet for a moment as their eye contact grew intense, her breathing quickening. A flare of energy surged through the huntress as she imagined all of the ways she could show Peebee what she was capable of.

“Okay, Peebee, I’ll bite...but you might want to hold onto something,” Cora warned, reaching up to cup Peebee’s face, pulling her down into a passionate kiss before she could answer back.

***** 

“ _Fuck_ , you weren’t kidding,” Peebee breathed out heavily, her head tilted backwards, a loud moan escaping from her lips. Cora could only smirk against the asari’s core, her hands squeezing her thighs tightly, holding her in place. 

Peebee’s hips were rocking in a steady rhythm above the huntress, riding her face with a growing desperation. Her hands were pressed flat against the frame of the bunk above them, supporting her weight, making it easier to grind against Cora’s skillful tongue. She was dripping with sweat from the exertion, her blue skin hot to the touch. 

“Ah!” Peebee gasped, feeling Cora’s fingers working their way inside her, making her writhe, her pleasure sky-rocketing. The huntress’s tongue flicked expertly over her little bundle of nerves that felt like they were going into overdrive. Cora kept her steady, the sight of Peebee losing control making the blonde ache to the core. 

“T-That’s it, keep going,” Peebee urged Cora on, a throaty moan following her encouragement from the sensation of the huntress’s digits thrusting in and out of her, combined with that warm tongue still working hard. “I’m so close,” Peebee whimpered, a strong heat beginning to build inside, ready to explode at any moment.

Cora felt a throb of arousal from Peebee’s sensual sounds, rubbing her own thighs together for some measure of friction, her body screaming for attention. Cora couldn’t stop a muffled groan, the vibration making Peebee’s hips jolt forwards. With one hand still clutching Peebee’s thigh, Cora slid her fingers in deeper and sucked on the asari’s pleasure point. It was too much. Peebee came, hard, crying out Cora’s name. 

After riding out her orgasm, Peebee collapsed, her body feeling like jelly as she almost fell off the bed. Cora reacted quickly, wrapping an arm around Peebee’s waist, pulling her close, chuckling from the yelp she’d let out when she lost her balance. 

“Hey, you saved me again,” Peebee pointed out between trying to even out her erratic breathing.

“Guess I did,” Cora agreed with a pleased smile. 

Peebee pressed herself snug against Cora’s side with a relaxed sigh as her body came down from its high, still buzzing pleasantly. Cora wiped her mouth clean with the back of her hand, her tongue running over her fingers, making Peebee bite her lip from the sight. 

“You taste great,” Cora whispered into Peebee’s ear, earning an embarrassed laugh from her new lover. “Wanna go again?” Cora added with a playful grin. 

“Um, duh,” Peebee answered, “as if you even have to ask.”

When her back was pushed firmly against the bed, Cora was impressed by just how quickly Peebee’s energy returned in full force. 

*****

“This is nice,” Lexi said, nuzzling against Ryder, her attention on the screen they were watching. Ryder let out a hum of agreement, resting the side of her face against Lexi’s head. They were in their pyjamas in the Pathfinder’s quarters, watching an old Planet Earth documentary that Ryder had brought with her from the Milky Way. 

It had become a weekly tradition for the two to settle down and watch the documentaries while the Tempest was docked at the Nexus for its regular maintenance and resupply. It was one of the few times the couple could find a measure of quiet and privacy. Ryder was grateful for any moment she got to spend with Lexi away from their work.

“Hm,” Lexi frowned. She could hear something that sounded awfully like static, near where Ryder’s gear was stacked in the corner. “What is that?” Lexi asked after a few more minutes of hearing the strange noise, finding she couldn’t block it out while trying to listen to the program. 

“I don’t hear anything,” Ryder said drowsily, almost asleep, watching the cute emperor penguins waddling across the ice while David Attinborough narrated-

“There it is again, listen,” Lexi shoved Ryder awake, making her blink rapidly, the relaxing music of the documentary interrupted by Lexi’s sharp sense of hearing. Ryder sat up, frowning as she concentrated on listening for the noise. The static crackle went off again. 

“I think it’s my omni-tool. SAM, can you clear this up? Sounds like a comm channel request, could be important,” Ryder asked, rubbing her eyes in an attempt to stay awake. 

“Yes, pathfinder,” SAM replied, fixing the feedback and accepting the request. 

“Yes, harder!” Peebee gasped in a high-pitched tone on the other end of the now open channel. 

Ryder bit her lip to stop herself laughing from the look of pure horror on Lexi’s face when, after a moment, it dawned on both of them what they just heard.

“God, Peebee, you’re so hot,” came a second voice. 

Ryder’s mouth fell open in shock. Lexi felt her cheeks turn a deep shade of blue, recognizing the owner of the second voice to be Cora Harper. 

“Tell me I’m not hearing this,” Lexi muttered with embarrassment, trying to block out Peebee’s...enthusiastic noises.

“Well, this’ll be awkward,” Ryder said.

“Ryder, don’t-” Lexi begged but Ryder had already hit the button on her omni-tool that would allow the other end of the channel to hear them too. 

“Hey, Peebee!” she said loudly enough that they would hear her over their activities. A hurried conversation started up between the two after Peebee let out a scream of surprise. 

“I-Is that Ryder?” Peebee sounded confused, and as if she’d been running a marathon for the last hour.

“Shit, it is Ryder,” Cora cursed, just as breathless as her company. 

There was some static as the two tried desperately to get themselves under control and save face. After some sounds of movement, it went unnaturally quiet. “Yep, what’s up?” Peebee asked casually. Ryder couldn’t help but snort in an attempt to mask a laugh. Lexi shook her head, speaking up in her partner’s place. 

“Could you turn off your comm channel, please?” Lexi asked as calmly as she could. 

“Comm channel? You hit the comm channel?!” Cora whispered under her breath.

“I didn’t do it on purpose!” Peebee hurriedly whispered back before clearing her throat dramatically. “Sure, no problem,” Peebee replied. Lexi wasn’t sure why she was bothering to ‘act natural’, it was pretty obvious what the two of them were doing. 

“Hi, Cora,” Ryder said. 

There was silence on the other end for a second. 

“Hi, Ryder,” she heard her second-in-command reply stiffly. 

“Have fun,” Ryder added with a smirk. Lexi shook her head, nudging Ryder for teasing them. 

“Thanks, we will,” Peebee answered before she could stop herself. 

“Peebee!” Cora hissed. 

“What?!” Peebee complained. 

Ryder laughed. Lexi sighed. 

*****

The following morning, Peebee strolled into medbay for her scheduled medical check, a satisfied grin having never left her face from the moment she got up. The exchange between the two asari had been awkward at first, mainly from Lexi’s perspective. It only grew more awkward as Peebee started to talk about the night before. 

“Damn, I mean, I knew Cora was in great shape but holy crap! How come you never mentioned what was under all those layers?” Peebee sighed dreamily as Lexi checked her scans. 

“You know I can’t divulge patient information, Peebee,” Lexi muttered under her breath. 

“Right, whatever.” With a cocky expression still plastered on her face, Peebee started to ask something she knew would make Lexi even more uncomfortable. 

“Wanna know how many times I-” 

“No, I don’t,” Lexi hastily interjected.

Peebee respected the doctor’s wishes; for about ten seconds. 

“Six. Six times!” Peebee blurted out before she could help herself, laughing at Lexi’s reaction. Her nose was wrinkled but her face was a darker shade of blue than usual. 

“I really don’t want to discuss this with you,” she sounded exasperated. 

“Oh, relax, I’m not asking you to compare notes with me,” Peebee joked. 

“What?” Lexi stared at her. 

“Compare notes? You know, see who’s better in bed: Cora or Ryder,” Peebee explained simply, hopping off the medical bed with an innocent smile. 

“Out!” Lexi yelled, motioning to the door with her thumb. 

“I’m going, I’m going!” Peebee raised her hands in surrender, quickly retreating from the medbay before Lexi lost it completely. 

Peebee walked towards the research center, spotting the Pathfinder headed in the opposite direction. With a playful grin, Peebee called out to her friend. 

“Hey, Ryder, wanna know how many times I-” 

“Six,” Ryder interrupted casually, sipping her coffee as she walked past. 

Peebee stared after her in surprise before noticing someone out of the corner of her eye. She looked over and saw Cora smiling behind her own mug of coffee. She winked at Peebee before disappearing into the bio lab.


End file.
